If you wanted to sincerely address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, you could express your support for a two-state solution, and encourage your fellow musicians to embrace the notion of Israel living in peace and security with a Palestinian state.

Your great country stands at the gateway between east and west. Istanbul is legend in the history of civilization. Your resistance today may well be a turning point between all of us and a return to the dark ages.

When Spanish painter and photographer Martin Frias asks me who my favorite rock band is, I say, "The Beatles." I can tell by the mischievous glint in his eye that this answer is far from correct. "That's not rock 'n' roll," he laughs, rolling his "r's" in a thick Catalan accent. "That's pop music."

Which was more amazing for you: the artistic achievement of this concert, the amount of money it raised to benefit victims of Hurricane Sandy, or the historic way the evening was shared around the world?

Although it seems that Paul Simon has been on the road frequently over the last few years, his latest tour seems much more date-packed as he heralds his latest and one of the best albums of his career, So Beautiful Or So What.